Articles Posted inBus Accidents

There were 19,061 motor vehicle accidents in New York City in July 2015 compared to 19,428 the previous month. During the same month in 2014 and 2013 there were respectively 17,361 and 17,548 crashes. For the last 3 months the number of accidents was unusually high and stayed above 19,000. So far since the beginning of the year there were 123,697 traffic accidents in NYC compared to respectively 118,195 and 117,022 for the same period of 2014 and 2013.

4,776 people suffered personal injury in motor vehicle accidents in NYC in July compared to 4,795 the previous month and respectively 4,591 and 5,077 for July 2014 and July 2013. Even though the number of motor vehicle accidents was very high in the month of July the number of people injured in these accidents was lower in July 2015 than in July 2013 and almost the same as in July 2014.

The number of motorists injured in a vehicle accident in July 2015 was unusually high and above 2,000 for the first time over the last 3 years under review.

Nearly a dozen people were injured in a bus accident in New York City yesterday afternoon. The bus was traveling on the north bond bus lane of Woodhaven Boulevard when a SUV traveling in the same direction cut in front of it to make a right turn. The bus driver tried to avoid the SUV and swerved before to crash into the building located at the corner of 63rd Avenue. The building was partially destroyed and the wall of an apartment located on the second floor was teared down. At the time of the accident, Colette Landers who resides in the apartment was inside. Thankfully she didn’t sustained any injury but she was shaken up. She explained to CBS that she was about to take a shower when everything flew over in her apartment and the wall fell down.

Witnesses tried to help injured passengers to get out of the bus by the windows however they couldn’t get to the bus driver who was crushed in his seat. They had to wait for the emergency crews to take him out using the jaws of life. He was seriously injured and transported to the hospital with six other passengers who also suffered serious injury. Other passengers were treated on stretchers at the scene of the accident.

32 year old David Rodriguez died from injuries he sustained in an accident during which he was hit by a NYC MTA Bus as he was riding his bike 9 days ago. Rodriguez was biking east on Van Dike Street in Brooklyn, NYC, when he was struck by a MTA B57 Bus that was heading south on Dwight Street. The accident happened at night after 11:00 pm on July 29th.

Rodriguez was transported to the hospital in critical condition. Last Friday, 9 days later, he died from his injuries.

After the accident, the bus driver stayed at the scene and wasn’t charged.

A 54 year old woman died in a bus accident yesterday night. The bus was traveling from New York City to North Carolina when the bus driver, 23 year old Eric Jimmerson from New York, fell asleep near Benson North Carolina on Interstate 95. The bus crossed the median heading towards a car coming in the opposite direction. The driver of the car swerved, trying to avoid the bus and crashed into a tree. He was seriously injured and his wife who was in the passenger seat died in the accident. Their 12 and 13 year old children who were sitting in the back were also injured. The New York bus driver was in critical condition after he was ejected from the bus. He may face charges. Four other passengers on the bus suffered personal injury. Read more here

A pedestrian with crutches was crossing the street in front of Radio City Music Hall in Manhattan when he was hit by a bus. According to the bus driver, the victim “lost his balance and ended up under the bus”. The victim was transported to the hospital in serious condition. The bus driver wasn’t charged. Another pedestrian who just happened to fall under a bus in N.Y.C. This is a classic statement by the driver that we have seen many times. Read more in the NY Post

A MTA report on a NYC fatal bus accident that happened last October indicates that the accident was preventable and that the actions of the bus driver were the most probable cause of the accident. The report indicates that the bus driver, 64 year old Theresa Gallager, was driving North on Willis Avenue in the Bronx at 1:40 am and turning left with a green light onto E. 147th Street when she hit 64 year old John Lavery who was crossing 147th Street in the crosswalk with the right of way. MTA drivers are supposed to take turns at a speed of 5 mph. Gallager was driving at a speed of 11 to 15 miles-per-hour when she turned. If she had followed MTA guidelines and driven slower, the death of John Lavery may have been prevented. Many of the frequent accidents involving pedestrians being hit by buses are the result of drivers who work long hours, are frustrated by the NYC traffic congestion and drive aggressively feeling they always have the right of way and it is the pedestrian’s obligation to get out of the way.

Gallager was the first of six bus drivers that have been arrested under the city’s Right of Way law, which makes it a misdemeanor to fail to yield to pedestrians and cyclists. In an article in the Post Theresa Gallager’s lawyer and the bus driver’s union blame a broken street lamp for the accident but according to the Gothamist, the report clearly indicates that the bus driver was responsible for the accident.

Last year, our partnersNew York Personal Injury AttorneysBen RubinowitzandPeter Sagirobtained a $8,570,000 verdict for a bicyclist who suffered personal injury after being hit by a bus in New York(seeprevious blog). This verdict is the 16th highest verdict of all verdicts obtained in New York in 2014. Therefore our firm is honored to be featured this week in the 2014 New York’s Top 25 Verdicts and Settlements section of New York Magazine. This verdict was also was the highest verdict in New York in 2014 for a bicycle accident involving another vehicle.

Since 1919 we have been representing victims of catastrophic injury and we are constantly thriving to achieve the highest results for our clients and their family in order to help them get back to their life with dignity and independence. A few years ago our New York personal injury law firm obtained a 27.5 million verdict for a female pedestrian who lost her leg after being struck by New York City Transit Authority Bus(seeprevious blog). Last year, in addition to the above verdict we also obtained a $7,125 million verdict against the City of New York for a woman who was struck by a bus when riding her bike and a $5 million verdict against the Federal Government for a woman who died after being struck by a postal truck(seeprevious blog).

In New York every year several pedestrians and cyclists die and many others suffer personal injury after being struck by an MTA Bus. In many of these accidents investigation shows that drivers were negligent and failed to yield or failed to exercise due care. Since the beginning of the year a few bus drivers were arrested after a new Vision Zero Law made it a misdemeanor for drivers to strike pedestrians or cyclists who have the right of way. TWU Local 100, the bus drivers Union is against this new law and would like bus drivers to be exempted from it. This morning TWU local 100 launched a work slow down on 181st Street in Washington Heights between 7:00 am and 9:00 am to protest the law.

The flyers handed out to bus drivers by the Union (see picture) said “DO NOT TURN UNLESS THE INTERSECTION IS CLEAR!”. Isn’t that what bus drivers are supposed to do to keep NYC streets safe?

A long awaited NHTSA rule has the potential to decrease by 56% untripped rollover crashes (rollover crashes that are not caused by striking an obstacle or leaving the road) of large trucks and big buses. This new rule requires that all Class 7-8 trucks and large buses be equipped with electronic stability control (ESC) system. According to the NHTSA “ESC works instantly and automatically to maintain directional control in situations where the driver’s own steering and braking cannot be accomplished quickly enough to prevent the crash.”

This new rule has been a long time coming. The first recommendation to equip large truck and buses with ESC was issued by the NHTSA in 2011.

A 68 year old Spanish woman visiting from Spain died in a bus accident in Manhattan last Thursday. The woman was waiting to cross the street with her sister when a United Coach Line white bus that was parked just next to her pulled out of its spot and caught her under the front wheels. The scene unfolded in front of her sister who had to be hospitalized in shock. The United Coach Line bus had parked on Amsterdam Ave. outside the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, where the Teacher’s College of Columbia University was holding a hooding ceremony. The university was also holding its commencement, so thousands of graduates and their families were milling about the neighborhood. The driver apparently didn’t see the victim before pulling out. Read more in the NY Daily News